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Just checked out a book by this author--The Fruits of the Earth, written in 1897. The way he describes pomegrantes:
Let me tell you of the pomegrante; of its juice,
sourish like the juice of green raspberries;
Its wax-like flower the color of fruit;
Its closely guarded treasure;
Its partitions in the hive;
Its abundance of flavor;
Its pentagonal architecture;
Its skin giving in;
Its grains bursting;
Grains of blood dripping into azure cupts;
Drops of gold falling into plates of enameled bronze....
The book was embraced by European youths in the aftermath of the world wars. Gide's poetry is presented in the person of Menalque, a prophet, that urges a teen Nathanael to persue the pleasures and wonders of life.
Two quotes that I liked from the book--
"I stand on this particular spot in space which I occupy at this precise moment in time. I consider it to be a crucial moment. I point out and say: Here is South and here is North. I am the effect; I shall be the cause. The determining cause."
"There are very few monsters deserving the fear they inspire in us." -
I wrote the Gide comment for general knowlege--don't know how it ended up on the forum site. Well, guess it would be ok on the "about poetry " section. There is plenty of info about Gide on the Net.
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Sorry it has taken me a while to catch up on some of these Forum entries.
Your poem has been entered and Gide's biography details included.
Once again thanks for the assistance.
Jim
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mermaid7
Aug 11 5:55 PM 2006
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